This invention relates to the desulfurization of sulfur-containing hydrocarbon material. In another aspect, this invention relates to a method of desulfurizing sulfur-containing hydrocarbon material by converting the sulfur components into a water soluble form. Yet another aspect of this invention relates to a desulfurization of sulfur-containing hydrocarbon material by contacting a hydrocarbon material with a sulfur oxide compound and an amine, a salt of an amine or mixtures thereof. In still another aspect, this invention relates to contacting sulfur-containing hydrocarbon material with a sulfur oxide compound and an amine or a salt of an amine to thereby convert the sulfur components to water soluble form and then separating said sulfur components by water washing. In still another aspect, this invention relates to the removal of thiophene and its derivatives from a hydrocarbon material by contacting the hydrocarbon material with a sulfur oxide compound and an amine or salt thereof. Still another aspect of this invention relates to the removal of sulfur components such as thiophene and its derivatives from coal, coal liquids and crude oil by converting the sulfur components to water soluble form by contacting said coal, coal liquids, or crude oil with a sulfur oxide compound and an amine, a salt of an amine, or mixtures thereof.
The presence of sulfur in a hydrocarbon material can many times be a problem. The removal of the sulfur, therefore, becomes very important. This is especially true in the petroleum field where for many petroleum processes the sulfur present in the petroleum refinery streams must be removed as at high levels sulfur is objectionable for environmental reasons and at low levels sulfur is a poison for a number of catalysts. Sulfur is generally present in hydrocarbon material as hydrogen sulfide, mercaptans, sulfides and thiophenic compounds. Of these, the thiophenic materials are the most refractory. The removal of thiophenic components by conventional methods such as hydrotreating, therefore, requires severe conditions.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an easy and efficient method for desulfurizing a sulfur-containing hydrocarbon material.
Another object of this invention is to provide a method of removing sulfur from coal, coal liquids, and crude oil without requiring high temperature and pressure.
Another object of this invention is to provide a method which allows the removal of thiophene and its derivatives from a hydrocarbon material by simple water washing.
Other objects, aspects, and the several advantages of this invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art upon a study of this disclosure and the appended claims.